Developer: Dontnod Entertainment
Platform(s): PC, X360, PS3
Reviewed On: PC
Release Date: June 3rd, 2013
Genre: Action-adventure, sci-fi
My Rating: 8.5/10
Neo-Paris. 2084. Personal memories can now be digitised, bought, sold and traded. The last remnants of privacy and intimacy have been swept away in what appears to be a logical progression of the explosive growth of social networks at the beginning of the 21st century.
This game was an unexpected surprise. I'd stumbled upon it by pure accident, but after I saw the gameplay footage I was sold immediately, and needed to get my hands on it right away. Besides the little bit of gameplay I saw from videos, I played it completely blind, and I'm glad I did.
Yet another game that really does its best to be unique, but this game is unique in the way that it takes very different elements from different games and blends them all together. This game has it all; from platforming to an intuitive combat system, and then the game's own unique memory remix sequences, which I--as well as many others--think are the highlight of this game and what makes it stand out from the rest.
Remember Me is the debut game from Dontnod Entertainment. And for a debut game from an up-and-coming developer, the game looks incredible. I loved taking my time and sight-seeing Neo-Paris, from the dirty slums to the gorgeous higher-class districts, the art style was very distinct. I was definitely all for the mix between old Parisian buildings mixed with sleek, futuristic designs. The game's score is also something to be infinitely praised, as it does the same mix of old and new in utilizing orchestral music with added synth effects.
You play as Nilin, part of a group called Errorists. Nilin in particular is a memory hunter who can not only steal memories, but remix them, make them remember a completely different thing and even change their outlook on life from it. However, Nilin's memory was nearly fully wiped, and with only the voice of the mysterious enigma Edge guiding her, she's off on a mission to take down the mega corporation Memorize, creators of the Sensen, the memory-management device that the world has become addicted to. The whole premise of this game I thought was so intriguing. The idea of being able to choose which memories to keep or to discard, or even sharing memories with people. The closest thing we could do would be by showing pictures.
Even if I do love the setting and the overall world-building, I found the story itself to be...pretty predictable. Like I said earlier how this game takes all kinds of themes from different games and meshes them together, they sorta did the same with the story. It's pretty much your average video game story, with a big plot twist at the end. You know how it goes. It wasn't a bad story by any means, it just wasn't all that exciting. I did like Nilin as a protagonist though, and I enjoyed seeing the little scenes inbetween chapters where she's internal monologuing. Side note, I also found out that there was controversy in the developers' decision to have a female character for this game, and that having a male character was actually considered at first. I'm glad they decided to ignore the criticism and still went with a female protagonist, though. It just fit really well overall.
Now even if the story isn't anything special, the gameplay is the opposite of that. The platforming felt very Tomb Raider, which I guess can be a good thing, but what really shone was the combat system. It was unlike any game I've ever played. Right off the bat you're introduced to the combo lab. You can create your own combos using attacks called Pressens. There are four different types of Pressens that the game introduces to you as you progress. In order, there's attack, regen, cooldown and chain pressens. Later on you're introduced to S-Pressens, which are powerful abilities that Nilin can utilize to be a big help in combat.
It's a bit difficult to explain, but the combat just feels so....satisfying. There's like this weight to it every time you land a hit on an enemy, and especially when you finish a long combo, it just feels great. I rarely get such a rush from a game, but this one did it for me. I couldn't get enough of the combat, it was just so dang fun. It also has that Capcom flair to it. I played it on the PC but used a controller. This game really is best played with a gamepad. I haven't tried keyboard and mouse, but I doubt it'd be as smooth as playing with a controller, with all the different combos and such. I can only imagine how awkward it'd be with keyboard and mouse, but hey, if you're one of those "PC master race!" people then more power to ya. I'm just sayin'.
Besides the combat, however, the game truly shines in its remix sequences. There's just enough of those sequences in the game to keep you satisfied, but still wanting more. I honestly feel like the few sequences that were in the game were perfectly enough, because if they added too many then it would get slightly too repetitive. Still, the remix sequences are all very unique in their own way and really challenge you to try out the many different options you can do in them.
Throughout the game Nilin will have to remix certain people's memories. When this happens, the player has to cause certain glitches in the memory and change small little details in it. All you do is change minor details, but these minor details actually make a huge difference. There's multiple outcomes depending on if you get the correct order of glitches or not. The best way you can find out the right order is really by trial and error. These remix sequences were like nothing I've ever seen in any game before, and the developers did a fantastic job with it. I sincerely hope that if they ever planned to make a sequel, they'll make even better, more interactive ones. By now, memory remixing is their secret weapon, if they ever decided to make this a franchise.
While the story leaves a lot to be desired, the gameplay truly overpowers it. Remember Me is fun, creative and an outstanding debut for the developer. It takes bits and pieces of different elements from games and somehow manages to make its own unique thing out of it. I give it an 8.5/10. Play it if you want a game that's just straight-up fun with a capital F-U-N.
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